I was the Lich King.
I didn't know why I existed or what I was supposed to do. I had simply been sleeping. That was all.
But someone had woken me. How bothersome. Furthermore, that person had given me an order: break the seals of this land. An irresistible command bound me. It was irritating. At the same time, I figured it was as good a purpose as any, since I didn't have one anyway.
I began to gather subordinates. I had a feeling I’d commanded an army of tens of thousands before my slumber, but I didn't remember clearly. Regardless, subordinates were everywhere. With a single command, the earth took human form.
Hmm, they looked weak. They wouldn't be much help in a fight. Subordinates needed to be strong, after all. For some reason, I knew exactly how to assemble that kind of force: corpses. If I used corpses as a base, they would possess overwhelming power compared to those made of soil. It would be even better if those corpses had possessed great strength in life.
That meant I had to start by gathering bodies, but there was a problem. I was a King. Wasn't it embarrassing for a King to wander around searching for corpses? It was, wasn't it? Yes, it was definitely embarrassing.
I was troubled. Even with no one watching, my stubborn pride was a nuisance. But a King was a King, even in death. A King remained a King even as he rotted. One couldn't call oneself a King without holding onto pride.
Maybe I could resign as King for just a moment, gather the bodies during that interval, and then reclaim the throne? No. I felt like that was something I absolutely must not do.
Regardless, without subordinates, I couldn't do anything about the seals. Or could I? Couldn't I just do it alone? After all, I was a King.
"Fuhahahahahaha!"
It didn't work. The soil was too hard. I tried digging with magic, but it was inefficient. My magic was specialized for killing living things, unfortunately. I was already at my limit.
Ah! Was I a fool? I looked at the area where I'd commanded those first Soil Soldiers. The earth had vanished in exact proportion to the amount of soil that had taken human form. Using my remaining magic power, I shaped the soil into human shapes. They still looked weak, but the earth disappeared as they rose. This was it.
Alright, as my magic power recovered, I would churn out Soil Soldiers one after another. They were flimsy-looking things, but they looked impressive enough when gathered in large numbers. Two hundred units. Yes, not bad.
The Soil Soldiers began to dig the hole, bit by bit. They were quite the diligent workers. The only downside was that their silence made me feel a bit lonely.
At any rate, I continued to dig downward. The advantage was that neither I nor my soldiers required food or sleep. We dug constantly. Even so, it took many years. Along the way, I was saddened when several of my subordinates melted into the seeping groundwater. I could never forget the sense of unity we felt when we shattered the hard rock together using my magic.
When the heavy rains persisted and the walls of the pit began to collapse, I thought it was the end. However, the hole finally reached the intended depth. I wondered how I knew it was deep enough. I decided not to think about things I couldn't understand.
Next, I had to dig horizontally. The direction was... this way. For some reason, I just knew.
It took many more years. Eventually, we reached a site with a massive black rock. This was one corner of the seal. I could feel that there were several more like it. In any case, I just needed to destroy them, but I had a feeling that breaking this one now would be a mistake. They had to be destroyed all at once. Otherwise, I felt like meddlers would interfere. I wondered why I was thinking that. Was it the will of the one who had commanded me? As expected, I didn't understand. I didn't think about things I didn't understand. I was a King. I wouldn't be troubled by unnecessary worries.
While digging toward the next seal rock, I discovered corpses. There was a hollow space deep underground containing a vast number of human remains. I wondered what the hollow was, but the corpses were more important. Time had passed—not just a century or two. These bones were likely a thousand years old. However, I felt power within them.
Without hesitation, I commanded the remains. Death Knights. Oh, this was magnificent. I could feel their power. They looked capable of handling the close-quarters combat I lacked. This would work. I commanded the corpses one after another. I created seventeen Death Knights and about eighty Death Warriors.
Yes, this was good. I tried making them march in formation. In spite of myself, my cheeks... well, I didn't have cheeks, but I was grinning.
"O Soil Soldiers. You don't have to try and compete with their marching. I won't abandon you. After all, haven't we shared our hardships together until now?"
I would give the Death Knights and Death Warriors strict orders: the Soil Soldiers were their seniors. Hahaha. Alright, let's work hard at digging today as well.
"Death Knights, Death Warriors. Investigate this hollow. I'm sure it's fine, but it would be troublesome if there were any strange intruders."
The Soil Soldiers continued their excavation. It seemed the hollow where the bodies had been was part of some Dungeon. Since they found a path leading to the surface, I left that area to them. I kept digging, but recently I'd been devising and recording efficient work methods. Since I had no parchment or ink, I carved my notes into the stone.
Fuhahaha. Impossible. What a chore. Paper, please!
The Death Knights managed to obtain some. Oh, well done. Where did they find it? They had conquered the Dungeon and found a destroyed village upon reaching the surface? So that was where they got it. It was quite beautiful paper. Had the village been destroyed recently? I wondered why. I didn't think about things I didn't understand. The top priority was breaking the seal.
In that manner, we continued to dig. It was a stroke of luck when we encountered a magic beast that naturally dug tunnels. I used my Hypnosis to bring it under my control and successfully put it to work. I felt a bit bad about having to kill a few of them. I wouldn't make their corpses work; I would give them a proper funeral instead.
Just as I was thinking that, another magic beast—one I hadn't hypnotized—attacked us.
"Death Knights. I leave it to you."
One of the Death Warriors once got separated when he went to the surface. Apparently, he'd lost his way. I was glad he managed to rejoin us safely. However, I was surprised to see he was leading a group of skeleton subordinates. Could he do the same things I could? How impressive. But it wasn't good to increase his numbers without my permission. I gave him a stern scolding. Beside him, several Death Knights and Death Warriors quietly averted their eyes—though they didn't have eyes—from me.
I decided not to sweat the small stuff. I was a King, after all.
The magic beast under my control discovered the second seal rock. Good, good. Progress. The next direction was... this way.
Hm? Was it noisy? How unusual. Silence was their best quality. Had something happened? I went to investigate, only to see the sole of a foot belonging to a woman with a terrifying face.
Um, well, I wondered... who was I? Hmm, I felt like a lot of things had happened, but I didn't really know. But I disliked that big sister.
"Lady Hakuren, you've been completely rejected, haven't you?"
"You rampaged quite a bit yourself. I wonder why it's just me."
I liked the big sister with the little horns on her head.
"Considering what we did to her, I think it's only natural, but... oh? She's holding something."
This was, you see, something important.
"Progenitor. Do you know what it is?"
I liked this tired big brother, too. But I couldn't give it to him.
"Hm? Ah... it's nothing much."
"What is it?"
"It's a Soil Soldier Core."
"Ah. It was fighting to protect her."
"So it seems. There should be no need to take it away."
"I suppose so. Then, this area..."
"There is nothing more we can do here. For now, let's return to the Village Head. Spiderlings, assemble."
I liked the spiders, too. I liked the slightly troubled big brother, too. I liked the doggies, too. I liked the Hot Spring, too. And the big sister with the little horns who made sure my important thing didn't melt... I liked her after all.
Was the food delicious? For some reason, it felt very nostalgic. It was a feeling I didn't quite understand. I didn't think about things I didn't understand.
Who was I?
"Lady Urulbraza? No way..."
"But given the era... it couldn't be anyone else."
"That characteristic hair color... I'm certain of it. She is the Hero Queen. Lady Urulbraza."
The big sisters with wings were whispering to each other, looking troubled. It seemed my name was Urulbraza. For some reason I couldn't explain, I felt like I wanted to be called Urza.
My name was Urza. The most important thing was the single lump of earth I held in my hand. Everything else... I didn't really know.